Head Member For A Current Bar For Use In Electroplating Apparatus

ABSTRACT

Method and apparatus for reducing corrosion of a current bar in a corrosive environment. The non-reactive metal is fused around a reactive metal creating a shell and reducing the corrosion of the reactive metal.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present patent application is based upon and claims the benefit ofprovisional patent application No. 61/644,500, filed on May 9, 2012.

The present invention is intended for use with an electroplatingapparatus intended to metal coat substrates of various types. Theinvention is specifically directed toward an improved head member for acurrent bar for use in providing electrical current to an anode andreturning electrical current to a power supply from a cathode orsubstrate.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In a typical electroplating process a power source having an anode and acathode is engaged with current bars. The current bars are immersed in aplating bath. The current bars supply current from the power source toan anode and returns current to the power source via the substrate to becoated or cathode. Many times current bars are constructed of copper ascopper has proven to be highly efficient in transporting electricalcurrent. The plating bath many times is of varying acidity andcomposition depending upon the specific metal being applied to thesubstrate. Typical metals used as coatings includes iridium, nickel,copper, tin, zinc, chromium, gold, silver, palladium, and platinum.

The acidity of the plating bath is known to react with the copper of thecurrent bar and very rapidly decomposes the current bar, resulting inincreased maintenance and time consuming and costly replacement of thecurrent bar. Past attempts to protect the copper of the current barinclude wrapping the current bar with a metallic outer shell wherein themetallic outer shell is non-reactive with the acidic plating bath.Problems continue to be encountered however when the current bar isimmersed in the plating bath and acid seeps between the outer wrap andthe copper current bar. The current bar includes an unwrapped headmember having exposed copper where the current bar is engaged to thepower source. Thus, the gap between the copper and the metal wrap isexposed to the chemicals in the plating bath. The chemicals then seepinto the gap along the entire length of the current bar. The presentinvention improves upon this structure for the current bar.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a head member for a current bar that isconstructed of copper fused with a non-reactive metal, such as titanium.The fusing of the metal shell to the copper eliminates the gap betweenthe shell and the copper which previously allowed the acid in the tanksto seep into the gap between the copper and the shell and erode thecopper, thus ruining the current bar. The copper head member clad intitanium provides a sealed unit, when properly attached to the currentbar, which blocks the acid from seeping between the copper and thetitanium, resulting in slower erosion of the current bar.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of the current bar of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the current bar head of the current bar of FIG.1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the current bar head of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to FIG. 1 a current bar 10 is shown, the current bar iscomposed of an L-shaped section which is used to carry the metal anodeplate (not shown). The current bar is preferably constructed of copperwhose outer surface is fused with a titanium layer. The metal anodeplate is attached to the current bar by fasteners extending throughholes 14. The current bar includes a head member 16 which attachesdirectly to the power supply.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3 the head member 16 is constructed ofcopper fused with titanium. Contact face 18 is created by machining thetitanium from the copper and exposing the copper. Holes 20 machined inthe current head allow a fastening member to attach the head member 16to the power supply wherein the contact face 18 receives the electricalcharge and transports it through the copper of the current bar 10. End22 of the head member 16 also has the titanium clad machined therefrom.The head member is thus allowed to be welded to the current bar 10,first through a copper to copper weld, and secondly through titaniumweld. Thus, the entire current bar 10 is sealed from seepage of theacidic chemicals from the plating bath through the head member 16. Thecopper, with the exception of the machined face of the head member 16,is not exposed to the chemical plating bath. In this embodiment theopposed end 24 has a titanium end cap welded to prevent exposure of thecopper material to the acid bath. Thus, the invention creates a sealedunit in which the acid chemicals cannot get between the copper materialand the titanium shell and erode the existing current bar 10. If theexposed copper on the head member 16 erodes, the head member is easilyremoved from the current bar 10 and a replacement head member can bewelded thereto. This eliminates salvaging costs for the entire currentbar.

While copper fused with titanium are the preferred metals for formingthe current bar, those metals are not intended to exclude the use ofother metals capable of achieving the desired results. This descriptionof the preferred embodiment is not intended to limit the scope andcontext of the following claims.

The above Detailed Description Of The Present Invention is given forexplanatory purposes. It will be apparent to those skilled in the artthat numerous changes and modifications can be made without departingfrom the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the whole of the foregoingdescription is to be construed in an illustrative and not a limitativesense, the scope of the invention being defined solely by the appendedclaims.

I claim:
 1. An apparatus for conducting a current and reducing erosioncomprising a conductive metal fused with a non-reactive metal.
 2. Anapparatus according to claim 1 wherein the conductive metal is copper.3. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the non-reactive metal istitanium.
 4. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the conductivemetal has an outer surface and the non-reactive metal creates a shellfused with the outer surface of the conductive metal.
 5. An apparatusaccording to claim 1 wherein the combination of the fused non-reactivemetal to the conductive metal reduces corrosion of the conductive metalin a corrosive environment.
 6. An apparatus according to claim 1 whereina portion of the non-reactive metal shell is removed from the outersurface exposing the conductive metal for connecting with a power source7. A method for replacing a corroded metal head comprising: removing themetal head from the current bar; attaching a new head member to theexisting current bar by first welding the conductive metal of the headmember to the conductive metal of the current bar, using a conductivemetal to weld the members; and welding the non-reactive metals of thehead member to the non-reactive metal of the current bar using anon-reactive metal for said welding.
 8. A method for reducing corrosionin a current bar immersed in a corrosive environment comprising: a)fusing a conductive metal member with a non-reactive metal shelleliminating any exposed surface of the conductive metal; b) creating anexposed surface of the conductive metal member to form a head member; c)connecting the exposed surface of the metal head member with a powersource; d) operating the current bar in a corrosive environment.